Shield for fire-arms



(No Model.)

' J. HUNTER@ SHIELD FOR PIRE ARMS.

N0. 295,013. Pate-Md Mar. 11, 1884*,

' WJTIVESSES JNVENTQR ,Y

Unirse Strains Pari-Lair Erica..

JiiMEs Ai-nnv'rEn, or eAMnEN, Nrnv JERsEY.

SHIELD FOR FIRE-ARMS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 295,013, dated March11, 1884.

Application tiled January 4, 18S-l.

To all when@ t '11m/y concern.-

Bc it known that' I, J Ainns HUNTER, a sub ject of the Queen of GreatBritain and Ireland, and a resident of Camden, New-Jersey, have inventeda certain Improved Shield for Fire-Arms, oi" which the fbllowing'is aspecification.

The object of my invention is to furnish a soldier with an effectiveshield against the fire of an enemy, the shield being such that when notin use it canbe compactly foldedand carried withoutinconvenience, so asto be always at hand when needed. This object I attain in the mannerhereinafterset forth, reference being had to the accompanying drawings,in whichm Figure l is a'view showing one manner in which the shield canbe used; Fig. l, a face view of the shield as it appears when incondition for use; Fig. 3, aview showing the same folded; Fig. et, anenlarged transverse section of part ofthe shield, Fig. 5, a perspectiveview of part of the saine; Fig. G, a view of part of a -modiiied form ofshield, and Fig. 7 a further modification.

rIhe invention consists, essentially, of a folding shield applicable tothe barrel of a rifie,

. niusket, or Carbine, and serving, when expanded, as an effectiveshield for the head and body of the soldier, and capable, when folded,of being carried at the side with as little inconvenience as that causedby a sword or bayonet. rIhe shield is made of some material cz pable ofresisting rifle or musketry fire at an ordinary range, and the soldieris lthus provided with the means of instantly and effectively protectinghimself from the fire of an enemy. rI'he shieldis, in effect, a portablefortification, more effective than a rifie-pit, so that bold skirmishingmovements can with safety be made in the face of an enemy; or, in theease of a general engagement, new lines of attack and defense can bereadily formed, or troops moved under an enemys fire without risk ofheavy loss. By raising the shield above the head, the soldier isprotected from fragments of bursting shells when subjected toshell-lire, and when used inthis way the shield is available also as aprotection from the direct rays of the sun when the soldier is on the(No model.)

march, on guard duty, or otherwise engaged, i

ing a series of connected segments, a, attachedto bars b, the pivot-pinsof which are adapted to slots in plates d, notched for adaptation tothebarrel of the fire-arm. rFhe shield, when expanded, should be ofsufficient diameter to protect the vital parts of a person using thefirearm; and the segments may -be furnished with sighting-slots, asshown, the bars b being preferably of such length as to provide a restfor the shield and gun when the soldier assumes the position shown inFig. l. rIhe segments a are preferably arranged to overlap and slide oneachother, and are guided and retained by means of a pin, j', on eachsegment, adapted to a slot, g, in the adjoining segment, the slots beingrecessed for the reeeption of thehcads of the pins, `as shown in Fig. 5.rIhe segments may, however, be constructed so as to fold, and bcprovided with hingejoints, as in Fig. 6; or the shield maybe made of acontinuous web of flexible materialsucli, for instance, as cloth with ametallic warp or weft or small interlocked linksand it may be made tooperate in the same manner as an umbrella, as shown ip Fig. T. In fact,I wish it to be distinctly understood that the main feature of myinvention is not limited to any particular construction of foldingshield, or to any special means of folding or expanding the the same,nor is it necessary that the shield should be detachable from the barrelof the fire-arm, although this is of course preferred.

I am aware that it has been proposed to make shields of metal plateseonstructedfor being hinged together at the edges, each plate being oflarge size, and the series of plates be` ing intended to rest upon theground, so as to serve as a substitute for an earth-work or likefortification; but my invention is entirely dis- 9 tinct from this, aseach shield is a complete self-contained device capable of being foldedinto small compass and carried by the firearm when in use, but of such acharacter as not to interfere with'the ordinary uses of the arm.

IOO

VVithont therefore claiming, broadly, a portable shield or breastwork, Iclaim as my inventionl. As a new -article of manufacture, a bullet-proofshield constructed so as to be folded intoconipact form, as described,and having, when expanded, a central opening for the reception of thebarrel of a fire-arm, as set forth.

2. The combination of a re arm WithV a bullet-proof shield attached toand carried by the barrel of said fire-arm, and capable of being folded,as set forth. v

3. The combination of a fire-arm with a folding shield of bullet-proofmaterial attached'to and carried by the barrel of the hre-arm, butconstructed so as to be readily detached therefrom, as set forth.

4:.' The Within-described folding shield for having pins f and slots gfor their guidance and retention, as set forth.

6. The combination of the fire-arm With the folding shield havingopposite projecting bars b b, serving as a rest, as set forth.

g In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification inthe presence of two subscribing Witnesses.

JAMES HUNTER. Witnesses:

J QHN M. CLAYTON, HARRY SMITH.

